City Council members grouse about being blindsided by special events that inconvenience residents

Festivals showcasing art, food and music are a warm weather staple in Chicago. But when streets are closed, parking spaces are taken and traffic is congested, the local alderperson takes the heat.

That’s why Cultural Affairs and Special Events Commissioner Erin Harkey got an earful during Wednesday’s budget hearing.

It’s not the first time alderpeople have beefed about being blindsided by special events in their wards.

But Vice Mayor Walter Burnett (27th), fed up with the department’s decision to notify alderpeople by email instead of seeking their approval, is now threatening to block the Windy City Smokeout summer festival that showcases country music and barbecue in the parking lots surrounding the United Center.

“They wanted to block off four streets. And I’m like, `You want Madison. You want Warren and you want Washington while we got all this construction going on all over this city,” Burnett said. “That’s crazy. ... I had to block … them from taking over the streets.”

“They blocked off a church from getting in their parking lot. The pastor called me late at night about people not being able to come to the church,” Burnett said. “If we would have had a conversation beforehand, I would have [warned you]. ... Aldermen know about those kinds of things.”

Burnett closed with a sweeping threat.

“I’m just going to ban all events from happening in my ward if I can’t get the respect enough to be able to be the voice of the people in my ward.” he told Harkey.

Ald. David Moore (17th) blamed former Mayor Lori Lightfoot, whose contentious relationship with the City Council was a hallmark of her one-term tenure.

“It’s not just within this department. Trust me. It’s citywide. At some point, it was a message from the top under the previous administration,” Moore said.

“I tend to just shut the things down when I’m not communicated with. We don’t want to do that. We want to make sure our communities are respected. ... It’s not just [DCASE]. It’s citywide. And it has to stop.”

Harkey said she has mandated that no special events be permitted without input from the local alderperson.

Those who don’t respond to an email notifying them of an upcoming special event will get a follow-up phone call soliciting feedback that can be passed along to event organizers “before an event is permitted,” she said.

“We are working on it. I certainly hear you,” Harkey told Burnett.

Changes will also be made to Chicago’s special events ordinance that will extend the review process and raise the bar for community engagement for events with attendance exceeding 10,000 people. The new guidelines will mirror those put in place by the Chicago Park District before renewing the permit for Riot Fest.

For days and weekends that are “untenable” because Chicago Police Department resources are already “stretched thin,” event organizers will be told in advance that certain weekends are off-limits, Harkey said.

Ald. Felix Cardona Jr. (31st) was not appeased.

“Three years ago, there was an ordinance change. We need to revisit that ordinance to give us the power, because they took away that power from us to say `yea’ or `nay’ on what goes on in our neighborhood when it comes to festivals and street [fairs],” Cardona said.” “It took away our voice from having a say of what’s going on.

“We are the punching bags for the residents,” Cardona said. “We have a lot of work to do and then, we have to go back to our residents and … let them know, `We didn’t know about this, either.’ It makes us look like we’re incompetent. And we shouldn’t be looking like we’re incompetent.”